


Breathlessness

by orphan_account



Category: Homestuck
Genre: M/M, and i hate pesterlogs, eridan is an idiot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-27
Updated: 2016-08-27
Packaged: 2018-08-11 07:00:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7881097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eridan doesn't think taking care of himself matters much until he almost dies. Then, it takes him confronting his savior to realize the feelings he has for him...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Breathlessness

**Author's Note:**

  * For [1010nabulation](https://archiveofourown.org/users/1010nabulation/gifts).



Eridan doesn’t notice something’s wrong, not really, until he’s sitting at his husktop and he suddenly can’t breathe. He chalked up the migraines and hot flashes to him not eating or sleeping enough, or just the start of a cold. When he started hacking up big, purple gobs of… something, he started to realize that this maybe wasn’t normal, but he put it to the back of his mind. He didn’t have time to focus on himself when he could be focusing on FLARP or on hunting down lusii for Feferi’s lusus to eat. 

Focusing on anything but himself seems like the easiest thing to do, so he focuses on pestering Sollux and Karkat, and completely throws himself into his FLARP with Vriska. He doesn’t think much of eating, or getting into his recuperacoon at night, because why would any of that matter much? It’s not like he matters much anyway, isn’t that what all of his friends say?

It’s not until Eridan is sitting in front of his computer, grasping at his throat, eyes watering until his pesterlog screen is blurry that he starts to worry, really worry. He clicks on the first name he sees, a conversation filled with greyed out characters in long, rambling paragraphs, and types out something that he hopes vaguely resembles a “help me.” He’s only conscious long enough to see “carcinoGeneticist is typing…” pop up on his screen before he blacks out completely. 

\---

There are flashes, of light and color and sound, of warm hands touching his neck and of a cool rag on his forehead. Waking up briefly, only to feel shivers wrack through his body and then immediately fall back asleep. Eridan isn't awake long enough at any point to really hear or see anything, just small little flashes. When Eridan wakes up next, he hears a loud, gravelly voice speaking to someone else. The other person seems to be worried, and she talks quickly to Karkat, and Eridan hears his name being said before he falls back into the dark. He doesn't dream, only wakes and then falls back into unconsciousness. 

\---

Eridan wakes up in his recuperacoon, and the first thing he notices is that he can breathe, albeit roughy. He sits up and grasps at his chest, then at his neck, trying to feel if anything has been done. He looks around, trying to figure out what happened, and how he ended up in his ‘coon with nothing but clean boxers on, and why he’s in there. The door to his room is slightly ajar, and he slowly walks to it, hands ready to draw Ahab’s Crosshairs as soon as it’s needed. He steps through the door, walking arily, ready for any threat to be made known. What he doesn’t expect though, is Karkat, sitting on his couch, watching some god-awful movie on his husktop.

Eridan blinks a couple of times, trying to process this new development before croaking out “what the hell are you doing in my hive?” He winces at how scratchy his voice sounds as Karkat whirls around and pulls his sickles out of his sylladex. Karkat’s eyes widen and he tosses down his sickles before running to Eridan. “What the hell are you doing out of bed you absolute idiot, I already had to save you from the brink of death once!” Karkat said, holding up a hand before Eridan could respond. “And don’t even think about talking because your voice sounds like a subjugglator fucked a bottle of box of cigarettes and subsequently got lung cancer. We’re doing this over Trollian.” 

Eridan opens his mouth but closes it after considering how much saying nine words hurt earlier, and nods. Karkat tilts his head over to the desk where Eridan’s husktop sits, and Eridan slowly walks over to grab it.

caligulasAquarium [CA]  began pestering  carcinoGeneticist [CG]

CA: so wwhy are you in my hivve again

CG: WELL YOU MESSAGED ME A “help me” AND EVEN THOUGH YOURE A HUGE THUNDERCUNT I KNEW THAT IF THATS ALL THAT YOU SAID AND THEN YOU IMMEDIATELY GO OFFLINE, SOMETHING IS BOUND TO BE WRONG. I THOUGHT YOU HAD GOTTEN KILLED BY VRISKA OR SOMETHING BUT NO!

CG: YOU JUST HAD TO GO AND ALMOST KILL YOURSELF BY NOT CLEANING OUT YOUR GILLS! LIKE, COME ON! WHAT WERE YOU EVEN THINKING? WERE YOU TRYING TO GET YOURSELF KILLED?

Eridan frowned and looked down at his husktop, not making eye contact with Karkat, and instead, busying himself with typing out his response. 

CA: wwhats it to you anywway its not like you evven care

CG: WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU MEAN I DON’T CARE? IF ANYTHING I CARE TOO MUCH ABOUT YOU, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU DO DUMB SHIT LIKE THIS!

CA: yeah right none of you fuckers really care about me evven if you did no one evver seems to showw it and wwhat the fuck do you mean especially wwhen i do dumb shit cause thats pretty much all i seem to do

CG: OF COURSE I CARE ABOUT YOU, YOU TAINTCHAFING PIECE OF SHIT, I ALWAYS HAVE.”

CA: dont ignore my question you asshole wwhat the fuck do you mean by all of that

CG: I… I’M PALE FOR YOU OKAY? GOD IVE BEEN HITTING ON YOU FOR PERIGREES AND YOU STILL HAVE NEVER PICKED UP ON IT! SOMETIMES YOU CAN BE SUCH A FUCKBAGGING SHITSPEWING RAZZMATAZZ OF FUCK YOURSELF IN THE ASS!

Eridan looks up, trying to meet Karkat’s eyes, but he seems to be steadfastly staring at his keyboard, waiting for Eridan’s response.

CG: YOU KNOW WHAT IM SORRY I’LL JUST LEAVE YOUR HIVE, I WAS AN IDIOT TO COME ANYWAY.

Karkat hastily stood up, grabbing his husktop and walking to the door, but before he can get too far Eridan is on his feet, grabbing Karkat’s arm and rasping out a “wait!” Karkat slowly turns to face Eridan, biting his lip and looking at the floor. “Pale f’r you too, idiot.” Eridan says, wincing once again as his voice comes out muddled and scratchy. Karkat looks up at Eridan, trying to decide whether or not to believe him. “... Seriously?” he asks. Eridan smiles and reaches his hand out to touch the side of Karkat’s face, nodding instead of trying to speak again, hoping that his message got across. Karkat smiles slightly and leans into Eridan’s hand before holding out his hand with his index and middle fingers spread into a sideways peace sign. “Pale for you?” he says, looking at Eridan and trying to gauge his reaction. Eridan copies the gesture and holds his half of the diamond up to Karkat’s half. “Pale for you.” 

**Author's Note:**

> hey guys!! this is for 1010nabulation, i hope you like it! im very very sorry about the pesterlogs not being formatted, ive been dealing w/ some health issues and just couldnt get them to work unfortunately :( please message me at my tumblr (moiiraiil.tumblr.com) and comment below!! constructive criticism is always welcome!!!


End file.
